The day my camera died.
(Not to be confused with the day the music died).
The past couple of days I have gotten to explore this beautiful city that I get to call home for the next few months. After orientations, classes and my internship interview, Friday was the first day I had to really get to see where I was living.
I walked toward the canal and on my way found a nursery in between two elegant homes. I never expected to find lush gardens in the middle of a large paved metropolis but the amount of green in London has surprised me. I wandered around for a while, looking at the various trellises and bistro sets (the classic European outdoor décor) and budding flowers. The walk was mainly residential but I managed to find a few pubs and markets before stumbling upon an old church. The grounds were picturesque; the church was older than America (something I am finding is actually fairly common over here). I could only imagine something comparable to a scene out of a movie: sitting on the wooden benches outside reading and sipping a coffee. I may have to try that sometime (likely without the coffee). As much as we have all tried not to look like tourists, not taking pictures on my adventure seemed stupid.
Saturday was a late start to the day but three of us decided to venture to Regent’s Park, a vast area just north of where we live. It is home to a college, a royal rose garden and the London zoo. Unfortunately I only saw the giraffes from afar but it was still worth the walk. Londoners played soccer, cricket and other various pick up games throughout the area. We walked up Primrose Hill to a beautiful view of the city. It was hard to capture in a picture; the camera only seemed to distance all the sights. Cranes dotted the landscape everywhere; I haven’t seen a part of the city yet that hasn’t had some sort of construction going on. And of course as a tourist, I took some pictures.
Today we explored the south bank on a walking tour. Famous sights, such as the London Eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and Shakespeare’s Globe, are all a straight walk from one another down the Thames River. After the tour we decided to take a walk across the Wobbly Bridge (that thankfully doesn’t wobble – its actually name is the Millennial Bridge) to St. Paul’s Cathedral. Whether you know it our not, you all know what the Wobbly Bridge looks like. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, the darkness of Voldemort spreads to the muggle world and the death eaters tear apart the Wobbly bridge. (If you don’t know what I am talking about we may not be friends). Of course, I wanted to take a picture.
That’s when my camera died.
We went on to St. Paul’s Cathedral and spent the afternoon at the Tate Modern. I guess this just means I will have to revisit both since I didn’t get any pictures, but hey, I’m not complaining.
Time to go charge my camera.
Cheers,
Abby